Update on the implication of potassium channels in autism : K+ channelautism spectrum disorder

Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are characterized by impaired ability to properly implement environmental stimuli that are essential to achieve a state of social and cultural exchange. Indeed, the main features of ASD are impairments of interpersonal relationships, verbal and non-verbal communication and restricted and repetitive behaviors. These aspects are often accompanied by several comorbidities such as motor delay, praxis impairment, gait abnormalities, insomnia, and above all epilepsy. Genetic analyses of autistic individuals uncovered deleterious mutations in several K+ channel types strengthening the notion that their intrinsic dysfunction may play a central etiologic role in ASD. However, indirect implication of K+ channels in ASD has been also reported. For instance, loss offragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP) results in K+ channels deregulation, network dysfunction and ASD-like cognitive and behavioral symptoms. This review provides an update on direct and indirect implications of K+ channels in ASDs. Owing to a mounting body of evidence associating a channelopathy pathogenesis to autism and showing that nearly 500 ion channel proteins are encoded by the human genome, we propose to classify ASDs - whose susceptibility is significantly enhanced by ion channels defects, either in a monogenic or multigenic condition - in a new category named “channelAutismSpectrumDisorder”(channelASD; cASD) and introduce a new taxonomy (e.g., Kvx.y-channelASD and likewise Navx.y-channelASD, Cavx.y-channelASD; etc.). This review also highlights some degree of clinical and genetic overlap between K+ channelASDs and K+ channelepsies, whereby such correlation suggests that a subcategory characterized by achannelASD-channelepsy phenotypemay be distinguished. Ultimately, this overview aims to further understand the different clinical subgroups and help parse out the distinct biological basis of autism that are essential to establish patient-tailored treatments.peer-reviewe

Gravity dependence of the effect of optokinetic stimulation on the subject visual vertical

Accurate and precise estimates of direction of gravity are essential for spatial orientation. According to Bayesian theory, multisensory vestibular, visual and proprioceptive input is centrally integrated in a weighted fashion based on the reliability of the component sensory signals. For otolithic input, a decreasing signal-to-noise ratio was demonstrated with increasing roll-angle. We hypothesized that the weights of vestibular (otolithic) and extra-vestibular (visual/proprioceptive) sensors are roll-angle dependent and predicted an increased weight of extra-vestibular cues with increasing roll-angle, potentially following the Bayesian hypothesis. To probe this concept, the subjective visual vertical (SVV) was assessed in different roll-positions (≤±120°, steps=30°, n=10) with/without presenting an optokinetic stimulus (velocity=±60°/s). The optokinetic stimulus biased the SVV towards the direction of stimulus-rotation for roll-angles ≥±30° (p<0.005). Offsets grew from 3.9±1.8° (upright) to 22.1±11.8° (±120° roll-tilt, p<0.001). Trial-to-trial variability increased with roll-angle, demonstrating a non-significant increase when providing optokinetic stimulation. Variability and optokinetic bias were correlated (R(2)=0.71, slope=0.71, 95%-confidence-interval=0.57-0.86). An optimal-observer model combining an optokinetic bias with vestibular input reproduced measured errors closely. These findings support the hypothesis of a weighted multisensory-integration when estimating direction of gravity with optokinetic stimulation. Visual input was weighted more when vestibular input became less reliable, i.e., at larger roll-tilt angles. However, according to Bayesian theory, the variability of combined cues is always lower than the variability of each source cue. If the observed increase in variability -although non-significant- is true, either it must depend on an additional source of variability, added after SVV-computation, or it would conflict with the Bayesian hypothesis

Le sovrastrutture navali e il requisito stealthness

L'articolo esamina l'utilizzo dei materiali compositi nelle sovrastrutture delle navi militari. In particolare, lo scopo del lavoro \ue8 quello di comparare le diverse scelte progettuali che possono essere fatte nell\u2019ambito delle sovrastrutture navali con particolari riferimenti alle peculiarit\ue0 dei materiali di costruzione adottabili e dei vantaggi e svantaggi sia in termini di prestazioni strutturali sia in termini di prestazioni elettromagnetiche (stealthness).Sono esaminati casi tipici di studio relativi ad un albero integrato

Tourist Flows Organization in an Artistic Town

Proceeding of the 6th International Conferenc